Beach Opener
Dates: April 6-7 (Friday-Saturday)
Time: 10 a.m. (PST)
Location: Jack Rose Track - Long Beach, Calif.
Live Results // Meet Information // Meet Schedule

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IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine women's track & field team kicks off the outdoor season this weekend when it makes the short trip to Long Beach for the Beach Opener, March 6-7. The two-day meet will be held at Jack Rose Track. 
 
The Anteaters have 21 individuals entered in 15 events. The competition gets underway Friday with the hammer throw at 10 a.m. A full day of action is then slated for Saturday, beginning with the discus, long jump and 3000m steeplechase at 10 a.m.

STORYLINES
• UC Irvine kicks off the outdoor season at the Beach Opener for the second year in a row.
• The Anteaters welcome back 22 letterwinners from last year's squad, including two All-Big West performers.
• Senior Brianna Villanueva earned all-conference honors in both the hammer and discus last year.
• Sophomore Zani Meaders also received All-Big West distinction in the 400m where she ran a PR 55.00.
• Villanueva and Meaders rank among the top-five in school history in their respective events.
• The 'Eaters bring in 15 newcomers, with nine making their UCI outdoor debut this weekend.
 
THROWS
Despite graduating one of the most accomplished throwers in program history in Barbara Coward, the squad is in good hands with senior Brianna Villanueva leading the way. Villanueva earned All-Big West honors in both the discus and hammer in 2019. She established marks that rank among the top-four in school history with personal-records of 186-01 in the hammer and 163-10 in the discus. Sophomore Tayla Crenshaw is also coming off an impressive freshman campaign. After one year, Crenshaw already ranks ninth in school history in the shot put (41-10.5) and hammer (158-02). She was a Big West point scorer in the latter event.
 
JUMPS
The Anteaters return their top performers in both the long jump and triple jump. In the long jump, junior Natalie Koppel owns a personal-record 19-05.5, which ranks third in school history. Sophomore Lorraine Nance also broke onto the scene in the triple jump in 2019 where she was a conference scorer. Nance established a lifetime-best 38-08.75, putting her at No. 7 on UCI's all-time charts.
 
The 'Eaters have also added some depth in both events with graduate transfer Je'Neal Ainsworth, junior transfer Crystal Washington, and freshmen Chaselyn Amos and Kayla Mixon. Ainsworth brings the most experience as a three-time NCAA West Preliminary qualifier and two-time All-Mountain West performer in the triple jump at San Diego State. She established a personal-record 41-04.25 at SDSU.

SPRINTS/HURDLES
Sophomore Zani Meaders and redshirt junior Sha'Maya Flanagan are expected to lead the sprints group in 2020. As a freshman last year, Meaders earned All-Big West honors with a third-place finish in the 400m at the conference championships. She ran a lifetime-best 55.00 in the finals to move up to No. 3 in program history. Flanagan sat out last year after transferring from Arizona State where she registered personal-bests of 12.16 in the 100m, 24.41 in the 200m and 55.52 in the 400m.
 
In the hurdles, senior Mychal Robinson highlights a strong crew. Robinson, who redshirted last year, was a 2018 Big West scorer in the 100m hurdles. She enters her final campaign with a personal-record 14.00, which is eighth among UC Irvine's all-time leaders. Senior Cecily Montanez and sophomore Jaida Robinson also return in the 400m hurdles, while newcomers Amari Fraser, Kayla Rodriguez and Emily Ruff enter the mix.
 
DISTANCE
Sophomore Hannah Chau has high expectations for the 2020 outdoor track & field season. Last year, she was the first Anteater to score in both the 5000m and 10000m at the Big West Championships since 2013. Chau finished fifth in the 10K with a personal-record 35:43.62, which ranks fifth in school history.

In the fall, Chau also became UCI's first all-conference performer in women's cross country since 2008 with a fifth-place finish at the championship meet.
 
Behind Chau, the distance group has solid senior leadership in Anastasia Karnaze, Brenda Dorantes and Mariah Theologidy. In addition, UC Irvine brings in an influx of talent with eight newcomers.
 
UP NEXT
The 'Eaters stay local again next weekend, making their way to Fullerton for the Ben Brown Invitational, March 13-14.